Chakles s



C. S. BEARDSLEY.

ADJUSTABLE CASTER.

APPL-ICATION FILED SEPT. 12. 1918.

Patented May 11, 1920.

J! ornpy- UNITED STATES PATEN OFFIOEC CHARLES S. BEABDS-LEY, O CANTON, OHIO, ASSIGNOR TO THE UNITED ELECTRIC COMPANY, OF CANTON, OHIO, A CORPORATION OF OHIO.

ADJUSTABLE QAS'IER.

Application filed September 12, 1918.

1.0 all i l/tom it may concern.-

Be it known that 1, CHARLES S. Brianne- LnY, citizen of the United States, residing at Canton, in the county of Stark and State of Ohio, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Adjustable Casters, of which the following is a specification.

The invention relates to a caster for the rear end of a portable vacuum cleaner or other like uses, wherein it is desirable to adjust the caster upward and downward with reference to the machine to tilt the sameone way or another upon its forward casters, and wherein the vibration of the machine tends to change the ustinent; and the object of the improvement is to provide simple means for adjusting such a caster and for stopping or holding it in a given position of adjustment.

More generally, the invention involves means for adjusting two separable parts, one of which parts may have spring means for preventing separation and is provided with a flat face presented to the other part; and the improvement consists in the use of an adjusting screw in the one part inclined to the flat face on the other part, and provided with a pyramidal point or end having flat facets adapted to bear against said fiat face to normally hold the screw from rotation in a given position of adjustment.

An application of the invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, forming part hereof, in which- Figure 1 is a side elevation of a portable electric machine showing the improved caster thereon;

Fig. 2, a fragmentary section on line 22, Fig. 1; and

Fig. 3, a detached perspective view of the adjusting screw.

The fan case 1 of the vacuum cleaner shown in the drawings is provided in front with the suction shoe or cleaning nozzle 2, on top with the motor case 8, and in rear with the discharge tube 4: leading to the dust collecting bag 5; and on each side of the case is pivoted a handle arm 6 by means of which the machine is manipulated.

Machines of this type are usually provided with a caster 7 on each side in rear of the ends of the cleaning nozzle, so that the same can be tilted upward or downward by lowering or raising the rear end of the machine; and for the purpose of limiting the Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented May fl, 1920.

Serial No. 253,727.

downward movement, a rear caster wheel 8 is usually employed. By making this caster adjustable upward and downward with ref erence to the rear end of the machine, the normal position of the suction shoe with reference to the floor or carpet can be varied at will.

F or the purpose of the present invention, the rear caster wheel 8 is preferably mounted between the forks 9 at the rear end of the arm 10, the forward end of which arm is pivoted to the ears 11 depending from the lower side of the fan case 1; which ears may be formed on the plate or bracket 12 secured to or forming part of the rear end of the cleaner case.

The caster arm 10 is provided on its upper side with the fiat face 13, of substantial width, which is presented or opposed to the under side of the bracket plate 12 at a suhstantial. distance in rear of its pivotal connection of the arm therewith; and the laterally inclined adjusting screw 14 is located in the screw aperture 15 provided in the boss 16 at one side of the bracket plate 12. The adjusting screw 14 is preferably provided with a knurled head 17 conveniently located at the side of the rear end of the machine where it is readily accessible for turning the screw.

The free end of the screw is provided with aplurality of triangular fiat facets 18 so inclined to the axis of the screw that they may alternately bear fiatwise against the fiat face 12 which is presented to the under side of the bracket plate 12; which end of the screw may be referred to as a pyramidal point, although by the use of this term it is not intended to limit the scope of the invention to any particular number of inclined flat facets on the end of the screw, or to any particular form or shape thereof.

The parts are so arranged and proportioned that the free end of the screw will impinge the flat face on the caster arm intermediate its side edges, and it is evident that by turning the screw to move it longitudinally one way or another with reference to the bracket plate 12, the flat facets on the pyramidal end of the screw will successively abut the flat surface of the caster arm for stopping it at various distances of separation from the bracket plate; and also that when the caster arm is pressed upward as by the weight of the machine resting upon the casters, the bearing of any one of the facets 18 upon the flat face 12 of the arm, serves to hold the screw in a given position of. adjustment, against a rotation thereof by vibration or otherwise which is not induced by the application of considerable power, thereby stopping or holding the caster in such particular position of adjustment.

In view of the fact that a vacuum cleaning machine may be lifted from the floor, either bodily or at its rear end, it is preferred to employ one or more springs 19 acting to normally press the caster arm upward toward the bracket plate 12 on the bottom of the machine; and as illustrated, these springs may be in the form of torsion springs coiled around the pintle 20 upon which the arm is pivoted, the respective ends of which springs are adapted to bear against the bottoms of the bracket plate and the caster arm.

By this construction and arrangement, it is evident that the caster arm with the rear caster wheel thereon, may be adjusted to and from the bottom of the vacuum cleaner by merely turning the adjusting screw one way or another, and that when a particular adjustment is given to the arm, the screw will be normally held against rotation by the pressure of the flat face of the arm against one of the facets on the pyramidal end of the screw.

I claim:

1. In combination, a bracket, an arm pivoted to the bracket at one end having a caster wheel at the other end and a flat face presented to the bracket, and an adjusting screw in the bracket inclined to said face having a pyramidal point with facets thereon adapted to abut the arm face flatwise, with means as a spring for pressing the arm toward the bracket.

2. In combination, a bracket, an arm pivoted to the bracket at one end having a caster wheel at the other end. and a flat face presented to the bracket, and an adjusting screw in the bracket inclined to said face having a pyramidal point with facets thereon adapted to abut the arm face flatwise.

3. The combination of two separable parts, one of which is provided with a flat face presented. to the other, and an adjusting screw in said other part inclined to the Hat face and having a py'amidal point with facets thereon adapted to abut said faceflatwise, with means as a spring for drawing the parts together.

4. The combination of two separable parts, one of which is provided with a flat face presented to the other, and an adjusting screw in said other part inclined to the flat face, and having a pyramidal point with facets thereon adapted to abut said face flatwise.

CHARLES S. BDARDSLEY. 

